April 2023 at Stourton

We have already held our first two events of the year and it is great to be open again for 2023.

We have some fantastic events in the pipeline:

7^th May – Artisan Market in conjunction with Lincolnshire Makers

Last year we held two of these markets, bringing together the best of Lincolnshire’s artisan makers under one roundhouse sized roof! We were delighted by their success and they are back again this year. Whether you are a foodie or are looking for original home ware or jewellery then this market is for you.

On the day the estate is also open for you to enjoy. You can take in the walking trails, enjoy a deer safari (bookable here) and once you have done that you can enjoy refreshments from a selection of food and drink vendors.

Entry to the event is FREE, you just need to pay £5 per car for parking. If you keep your parking ticket you can be in with the chance to win a private deer feeding experiences on board  our series 3 LandRover!

To find out more please click here – we hope to see you here!

18^th May – Air Ambulance Fundraiser – Please Book

Enjoy a morning or afternoon on Thursday 18th May at Stourton Woods with home-made light refreshments all whilst raising money funds for the Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance.

You are very welcome to bring your dog (on leads please) and walk along one of the self guided trails across the estate and spot the red deer. Then arrive back at the safari tent for a morning coffee (or tea!) served at 11am with one of Pauline’s legendary home-made sausage rolls. Alternatively, if the afternoon suits you better arrive then and enjoy a cream tea (or coffee!) with a delicious home-made scone, jam & cream at 2pm and then walk it off!

There will be a selection of prizes on offer for you to win in the tombola. Please bring some money to support this & remember all proceeds and money raised will go to the Air Ambulance. The kettle will be on throughout the day so you can help yourself to a re-fill and keep hydrated!

PLEASE BOOK TICKETS FOR THIS EVENT HERE

11^th June – Picnic in the Woods – Please Book

Enjoy a relaxed Sunday (or weekend) at Stourton Woods on 11th June.   Experience the laid back atmosphere of the arboretum with good food, live music playing all day and activities included – the day is yours to spend as you wish!

You are welcome to bring a picnic and you also have the option of purchasing delicious savoury & sweet food & drinks from local vendors in the woods.

Your day ticket also includes:

• a chance for the whole family to play a variety of garden games (skittles, tin can alley, splat the rat and more),
• craft activities for younger visitors to make leaf necklaces, nature crowns, bug hotels & crafting to their hearts content,
• the chance to have a go at orienteering and find controls hidden across the estate,
• subsidised deer safari tickets (£4 pp) see the deer close up on a tractor & trailer ride, running throughout the day (buy in advance here)
• access to walk all the way marked trails across the estate, from 1km, 3km, 5km
• free parking all day

You can also choose to stay for the night / weekend with your tent, caravan or motor home with entrance tickets to Sunday included!

For more information and to book your tickets or pitch please click here.

Like we said, we’ve already been busy with a host of different events. We welcomed the Lincolnshire Orienteering Group for a fun packed evening on Thursday 13^th April. They really enjoyed the challenge of the course around the estate and parkland. We also welcomed Focus Rides on Sunday 23^rd April for a somewhat soggy day. We take our hats off to all those who braved the weather and the mud and put their bike through its paces.

On the 23^rd April we also attended Countryside Lincs event at the Lincolnshire showground. It was a pleasure to meet so many people and talk about what we get up to. We proudly showed off the new Series 3 Land Rover, being our stand’s star attraction and offered some fun table top play to keep the kids entertained, featuring several model Land Rover’s, of course.

Private Deer Feeding Experiences in our Land Rover are now available!

Private deer feeding experiences in the Land Rover are now available to book. Taking approximately 1.5 hours from 9am you can get up close and personal with the deer on our morning rounds as we feed them and you can find out how we look after them and get a tour of the deer parks in style!

Father’s Day is not far off; we think that this would be a perfect gift for up to 5 people to enjoy.

To find out more and to book your experience please click here.

Tidy up play areas or pathways with our Playchip – available to order now

As we approach summer perhaps you are looking to tidy up any play areas or pathways.

Our play chippings are produced from graded soft roundwood and has been screened, tested and is fully compliant with British Safety Standard Ref BSEN 1177: for Impact Absorbing Playground Surfacing when used to the recommended depth. So it is ideal to lay in your play areas whether in your garden or for commercial use.

There are no additives or waste products used in the production process – simply pure roundwood logs grown and sourced from our own woodlands.

For more information re recommended depth and to place your order please click here.

On the Farm

After a great team effort in April we are getting towards being drilled up. The wet weather has continued to frustrate! With the last of our heavy land spring crops about to be sown this week it has certainly felt like a bit of a slog this spring. It can be a little demoralising at times knowing that as time marches on both yield and quality are compromised, but not being able to do a single thing about it other than be patient and hit the ground running when conditions allow. It’s certainly been one of the trickier springs that I have known.

Alongside getting the barley and beet sown Ken and Tom have been busy repairing issues with our field drains across the farm. Most of our fields are under drained, some with modern schemes other areas with schemes 100 years old. It’s fascinating; if a little vexing at times dealing with land drains that don’t appear on maps! But very rewarding when you let the blockage go, you can see the wet area dry up in front of your eyes.

Once we have the last few bits of drilling done we will be applying our final dose of nitrogen to our winter wheats. Before we do this we will be using our N-tester to determine how much more nitrogen fertiliser our crops need to achieve optimum yield. More information about the n tester can be found here.

As the crops all develop and move through their growth stages rapidly we need to monitor them for disease. The pressure on the sprayer at this time of year is immense to try and hit the optimal timing for fungicide applications as well as weed control in a variety of crops. Dan is certainly kept on his toes!! By the time the next blog comes around, all being well there will just be a handful more spraying jobs to do before the run in to harvest.

Around the estate

We have been busy replacing worn out and weakened fencing as well as installing new gates to enable us to more easily move the deer from enclosure to enclosure for fresh grazing. We regularly rotate them around a number of separate enclosures, leaving some un-grazed for a period of time allowing the grass time to recover.

Deer Diary

We had to delay the turnout of our younger deer from their winter roundhouse dwelling because the very wet March meant there was a lack of grass for grazing. We waited another week for the grass to perk up whilst taking the opportunity to give it a pass with the aerator roller which also helps to kick-start growth. We also used this time to roll the silage growing and stimulate that too!

So turnout was a bit of a whirlwind! We were a Dan down so it was a family affair! The deer took a little while to get into exactly the right place but we managed it in the end! It was then another massive team effort to clear and clean down the round house, move fencing and clear the car-parking area. Special thanks go to our son Jamie for fitting in muck shifting around his GCSE revision – heads down now though Jamie!

We are really excited about our forthcoming events. Please book any tickets required for either the event itself or for deer safaris at the events as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Antony & Helen